10 Uses for Postits in Torchwood
by Erin Giles
Summary: Just as the title says. 10 drabbles for 10 uses. Iantocentric.


TITLE: 10 uses for post-it notes in Torchwood

AUTHOR: Erin Giles

RATING: PG-13

DISCLAIMER: Nope, still not mine. But one day though… one day. plots

PAIRINGS: Jack/Ianto implied, there's lots of Ianto/Owen bickering as well.

SUMMARY: Just as the title says. 10 drabbles for 10 uses!

AUTHOR NOTES: Ok, ok so I'm a little obsessed with post-it notes at the moment! They're totally awesome though! Also I feel slightly bad that I managed not to include Tosh in any of this… Will have to rectify that with Tosh/Ianto friendship angst.

* * *

1. To give useful reminders to other colleagues.

The first time Owen was early into work he was met with the sight of Ianto on the couch. Jack's great coat was draped over him and Owen could make out the white earphones of an iPod.

What put Owen off most though was the fact that there was a post-it note attached to Ianto's backside that read 'Do Not Disturb'.

When Jack came to wake Ianto, a cup of tea in his hands, he found his own post-it note had been replaced by, 'Bite my shiny metal ass, Captain!'. Jack resisted the urge and instead woke Ianto with a kiss.

* * *

2. To fill the boredom between alien hunts.

"Who's been making post-it note blocks into flipper books?"

Owen proceeded to chew on his pen with more vigor than was necessary as Ianto moved up beside his desk, glowering.

"Look mate, we haven't seen any sign of life, let alone alien life in over a week. How else am I supposed to fill the boredom?"

"Paperwork?"

"That's no where near as creative."

"What did you draw anyway?" Gwen questioned, getting to her feet to see. Ianto flushed red, stuffing the post-it notes away as he retreated down the stairs.

"Sorry, it's office property now." Owen said, grinning after Ianto.

* * *

3. To give friendly reminders to colleagues about proper car usage.

"Who does he think we are? Bloody teenagers with one too many speeding tickets?"

Jack had to hide his smile as Owen branded the pink post-it note in Jack's face that he'd just plucked from the steering wheel.

"He's just trying to be helpful, and also to cut down the number of speeding tickets that drop through the tourist office door."

"Okay, I'll remember that next time we're trying to save the world, or chasing weevils or running for our lives." Owen said, balling up the post-it note and throwing it out the window, the block letters of slow down lost in the wind.

* * *

4. To help colleagues with amnesia on their first day back in the office.

"Oh my god!" Gwen giggled.

"Harkness, what the hell?" Owen proclaimed as a post-it note was stuck to his jacket before he had a chance to take it off.

The hub looked like it had sprouted mould there were that many post-it's, on every single surface.

"He's got mild amnesia not bloody Alzheimer's." Owen said as he plucked the post-it from his desk that surprisingly proclaimed it to be 'Owen's desk'.

"I'm just trying to help."

Gwen and Tosh started laughing hysterically as Jack turned around, still writing. A post-it proclaimed Jack's arse to be 'Ianto's: for groping'. Owen sighed.

* * *

5. To pass lunch hours by playing team bonding games.

"This game is stupid."

"Aw bless, you're just feeling a bit put out 'cause Ianto out smarted you." Gwen said patronisingly.

"Who the hell has heard of Henry Morton Stanley anyway?" Owen asked, regarding the post-it that had previously been stuck to his head, leaving a sticky residue behind.

"Dr. Livingston I presume?" Jack said, coming out of his office and interrupting his team's name-game.

"What?"

"Henry Morton Stanley, born January 28th, 1941 in Denbigh, Wales. Famous for his exploration of Africa and his search for Dr. Livingston." Jack reeled off as Owen stood up to leave.

"Game's still stupid."

* * *

6. To express one's feelings towards another colleague.

Jack awoke to the smell of Ianto. There was the smell of freshly brewed coffee, that citrus shampoo he used and the aftershave that he had never known the name of but vowed to find out, because it just made him feel so wonderful.

Jack moaned; rolling over, paper crumpling beneath him. He blinked blearily in the half-light of his room and extracted the post-it that was now stuck to his cheek.

It was pink and explained the smell of Ianto. There were some words in Welsh. Jack couldn't read them, but he could hear Ianto saying them and that made him smile.

* * *

7. To create scavenger hunts on the pretence of team building.

The first one Ianto found stuck to his keys when he was about to go home, it read 'Going home so soon when there's pizza left?'

Ianto followed it to the next clue, buried underneath the boxes he'd stacked earlier that evening, 'Hopefully you didn't find anything "dead"'.

Ianto smiled and followed the trail round the hub until at last he found himself peering into Jack's bed where he found a half naked Jack lying there seductively.

"What took you so long?"

"Someone got carried away with the scavenger hunt clues, Sir."

Jack gave him one of his dazzling smiles.

* * *

8. To play pranks on un-suspecting colleagues.

Ianto wasn't in any earlier than usual, but was surprised to find a note on the tourist office door in Owen's doctor scrawl.

'Can you order some more post-it's, we're running low.'

Ianto frowned as he put his key in the door sure he had only just ordered a new box with the last stationary delivery.

The only rational thought that came to mind as Ianto stood in the tourist office doorway was; my office is yellow. Every inch of his office was yellow.

Ianto emerged from the hub door, yellow post-its stuck to his shoes and clothes.

"Where's Owen?"

* * *

9. To spread workload evenly and fairly within the office.

"Sir, I can't I've got paperwork to do." Ianto protested as Jack continued to stand in the doorway, coat on, and Ianto's coat in his arms.

Jack picked up a block of post-its and started scribbling notes and placing them on the different files before placing them on respective desks.

"There, no more paperwork for you to worry about, so we can go out now." Jack grinned, but Ianto frowned, reading one of the post-its.

'Gwen – you forgot to do this before you went home. Pop it on my desk when you're done.'

"That's hardly fair, Sir."

"I'm the boss."

* * *

10. To confuse fellow colleagues.

"Ianto love, where's the box of post-its?"

"We don't have paper post-its anymore I'm afraid Gwen since some members of the office," Ianto chose this moment to look pointedly at Owen, "decided to abuse the stationary privileges I've upgraded the computer system. We've got digital post-its now."

"And how does that work then?" Owen asked, outraged and a little confused, "We print 'em out and stick 'em to our work?"

"No, everything's online now."

"So it's just like emailing us reminders that we don't read then, only with some new fancy software."

Ianto's face fell. He hadn't thought this through.


End file.
